The Favored Heiress
Chapter 539: Are You Sure She Will Let Go of the Past?

Chapter 539: Chapter 539: Are You Sure She Will Let Go of the Past?

At this moment, a series of orderly footsteps came from the direction of the corridor’s staircase.

Feng Yi ceased the motion of dialing his phone, glanced sideways, and his handsome face darkened, "What brings the Duke here?"

The newcomer was Xiao Yehui.

Leading the way in front of him, as always, was his Royal Knight.

He didn’t respond to Feng Yi but instead looked towards the door of the study.

Within seconds, the door opened, and Shang Yu’s upright black silhouette strode out from inside.

In the opulently European corridor, the two men stood a short distance apart from each other, yet there was a clear divide of separation in the air.

Xiao Yehui walked forward, his gloved hand still hanging by his side, and spoke in a gentle whisper, "I thought you would stop me."

He had called Shang Shaoyan to express his wish to meet with Li Qiao, instinctively thinking that Shaoyan would prevent him, but to his surprise, he hadn’t.

Currently, Shang Yu met his gaze, with one hand in his pocket, his eyes sharply curling into a smile, "There should be a chance for you to say goodbye to the past."

The smile on Xiao Yehui’s face faded a bit, and as he turned to face the door, he looked back and questioned, "Are you so sure she can let go of the past?"

The man didn’t look at him, accepting a cigarette case from Feng Yi’s hand, his tone calm yet arrogant, "You can try."

Xiao Yehui glanced at him meaningfully and, with a curved lip, pushed the door open and went in.

Feng Yi watched his figure disappear behind the door, his voice laced with worry, "How is Li Qiao’s hand? You just let him in like that, what if..."

The man put a cigarette to his lips, his voice very low, "There are no ’what ifs’."

There had to be a resolution to the matter between Xiao Yehui and Li Qiao.

...

In the study, Xiao Yehui stood at the doorway, catching sight of the scene inside and a faint, imperceptible smile crossed his eyes.

It was still the Xiao Qi he knew, who, no matter what sudden situations faced, could recover her calm and rationality in the quickest time.

At the moment, she sat alone on the European-style long sofa, her dress trailing on the floor, legs crossed, her head bowed as she rubbed the bandage on her right hand, speaking to him indifferently, "You’re here."

From the bewildered recklessness of their first meeting to the nonchalant ease of this moment, the hands of the clock had barely made half a turn, and he could no longer see any superfluous emotions in her.

Xiao Yehui walked over and sat down on the armchair opposite Li Qiao. The polite pleasantries of meeting an old friend seemed redundant and insincere under these circumstances.

He sighed softly, leaning back into the chair with elegant posture, "How is your hand?"

Li Qiao pulled out a strand of bandage, rolled it between her fingers, and replied, "It won’t kill me."

Such overly casual conversation left Xiao Yehui momentarily at a loss.

In fact, he would have preferred it if Li Qiao had hit him, cursed him, or even fought with him, rather than seeing her so composed and indifferent.

Xiao Yehui shifted his gaze from her face and glanced at the bookcase ahead, a thin smile returning to his lips, "Xiao Qi, if I said I had my difficulties, would you believe me?"

"I believe," Li Qiao lifted her eyelids, looking at the face that had caused her guilt for three years, her heart involuntarily contracting, "But, it doesn’t matter anymore."

Xiao Yehui’s brows rose slightly, meeting her gaze again, "Do you blame me?"

Li Qiao pressed her lips together, looking at him with a faint expression, "Blame you for what? Faking your death to escape, or attacking your own people?"

"Xiao Qi," Xiao Yehui never changed his address for her, including those eyes, which, like three years before, always looked at her with a gentle smile that was always tempered, "Leaving me by faking your death, I won’t argue with that, but this time, when Lao San and Lao Wu got into trouble, why didn’t you ponder their reasons?"

A ripple finally stirred in the depths of Li Qiao’s eyes, but it vanished in an instant.

She lowered her gaze, curved her lips, and laughed lightly, "Back then, Huizai, as the military advisor for Seven Sons, was best at speculating about people’s hearts and controlling their emotions.

So, are you trying to tell me now that their injuries have nothing to do with you?"

Xiao Yehui was not deaf to her mockery. Having reverted to Duke Charlman over the years, no one had dared to speak to him in such a tone anymore.

The irritation was inevitable.

Especially since this person was Li Qiao.

Xiao Yehui regarded the mocking smile at the corner of her lips and slowly raised his left hand wearing a white glove, "You returned to Cloud City halfway, so you should have investigated the true cause of their accidents.

A CEO of a bought-out pharmaceutical company, an assassin who was refused a contract—just these two people managed to seriously injure Lao San and Lao Wu. Doesn’t that suggest something?

Xiao Qi, I would never deny what I’ve done, but have you forgotten? Back on the border, this was also our most common tactic—stirring the pot and borrowing external forces to strike, nothing more."

Li Qiao’s breathing became tense, and her deep gaze fell upon Xiao Yehui’s face.

In the past at the border, amidst rising war smoke, they had sat by the campfires, discussing ways to severely injure their opponents.

Indeed, these were their familiar tactics and tricks.

No matter how long it had been, she remembered every single incident that had taken place on the border.

But when these unsophisticated tactics were used against their own people, it was the epitome of irony.

At that moment, it seemed as if Xiao Yehui could read the mockery in her eyes. He pinched the white glove on his left hand and gently tugged. The prosthetic limb of the artificial arm was strikingly revealed under the light, "You blame me now for making a move on them, but it seems like you haven’t considered what I have sacrificed to protect all of you.

It’s true they were injured, but it was not fatal. And the ones who injured them, I won’t let them live.

If I truly wanted to harm you all, I’ve had countless opportunities to act in the past three years.

Rather than thinking about it, if Lao San and Lao Wu were capable enough, how could they have been injured, and how could they have made you rush back home overnight?

Instead of saying you’ve been through life and death for everyone, it might be better to say they’ve been dragging you down.

In your case, I don’t believe you would be unable to dodge those low-level assassination attempts."

Li Qiao’s gaze was fixed on Xiao Yehui’s prosthetic limb.

After a moment, she closed her eyes briefly, then reached up to rub her temples, "Is Duke Charlman trying to brainwash me?"

"Heh..." Xiao Yehui laughed lightly, supported himself on the armrest to stand up, and leisurely put the white glove back on, "You, just like before, who could brainwash you once you’ve made up your mind?

I’m just telling you that it’s only our stances that differ now. You know better than I do; this world is not simply black and white.

You are convinced I’m wrong, and nothing I say will matter. But there’s one thing you need to remember—if one day you and Shang Shaoyan part ways, then I am still your big brother from the border... Xiao Yehui."

Li Qiao suddenly stopped the fingers massaging her temple, waves ensuing in her eyes as she threw her phone onto the table. The screen displayed a text message, "You speak so loftily of yourself, but your methods are not clever. I would actually prefer you to openly declare us enemies."

Xiao Yehui straightened his glove and glanced at the phone screen, his eyes narrowing abruptly.

Looking at the few brief words, the smile on his lips deepened while his gaze turned incredibly cold.

Seeing him not speaking, Li Qiao felt her heart sink a few degrees.